Autophagy in adhesion and migration

Abstract

Autophagy, a pathway for lysosomal-mediated cellular degradation, has recently been described as a regulator of cell migration. Although the molecular mechanisms underlying autophagy-dependent motility are only beginning to emerge, new work demonstrates that selective autophagy mediated by the autophagy cargo receptor, NBR1, specifically promotes the dynamic turnover of integrin-based focal adhesion sites during motility. Here, we discuss the detailed mechanisms through which NBR1-dependent selective autophagy supports focal adhesion remodeling, and we describe the interconnections between this pathway and other established regulators of focal adhesion turnover, such as microtubules. We also highlight studies that examine the contribution of autophagy to selective degradation of proteins that mediate cellular tension and to integrin trafficking; these findings hint at further roles for autophagy in supporting adhesion and migration. Given the recently appreciated importance of selective autophagy in diverse cellular processes, we propose that further investigation into autophagy-mediated focal adhesion turnover will not only shed light onto how focal adhesions are regulated but will also unveil new mechanisms regulating selective autophagy.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
Jan 01, 2016
Source ID
10.1242/jcs.188490

Entities

People

  • Candia M. Kenific
  • Jayanta Debnath
  • Torsten Wittmann

Organizations

  • Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs
  • National Institutes of Health
  • Samuel Waxman Cancer Research Foundation
  • United States Department of Defense
  • University of California, San Francisco

Tags

Fields of Study

  • Biology

Readers

  • Molecular Biology and Genetics
  • Molecular and Cellular Biology